Audrius Mickevicius: Man-Horse

In the best Lithuanian slow-pace, spiritual documentary tradition this is a film that puts total trust to the image. And to the fact that an old man and his horse living in the countryside is a story that includes sufficient drama. It certainly does for a creative director like Mickevicius. There is enough of both story and drama, and of time for reflection if you believe in a film to be made when it meets its spectator. Taking that the film is a chain of sequences of carefully framed nature tableaux, one of life’s many stages, the narrative takes place within these, following the seasons: the old man dragging the horse to a place where he bolts it, the horse easily unbolting to be free again, yet never leaving the man, the horse being attacked by flies and bees, the old man preparing a spray to be put on the horse for protection...  it is a hell of a tough job for the old farmer but he continues his daily fight against the weather, scolding the horse at the same time as he gives it care. Where the wind is blowing, the devil goes, he says in a film that suddenly includes another small drama with a frog as the main character almost being wiped out by mud from the shovel of the man. It is a film full of moments, sometimes hard and rational (what a life he has), sometimes almost biblical scenes that communicates much more than you actually see.

It took the director many years to make this film about his neighbour. He has made several versions. This one is a television hour and a big hurra again for the contribution of Finnish channel YLE, and German MDR. Respect for the audience.

Nevertheless, film festivals all over, pay attention: This is a film for the big screen. Something very special. Beauty.

Lithuania, 2008, 52 mins.

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